I've included a link below to a fantastic article on container soils and how water moves through them. The article also has recipes for free draining mediums you can mix yourself. I think the 511 medium would be perfect for a half barrel. It would be worth your while to begin again, drilling the necessary holes, placing some mesh over them, and using a more durable, free draining soil that will hold up well and give your plants' roots better aeration along with excellent drainage. It really helps when you know what the purpose of soil is, and what plants actually require... and Al's article in the link covers it all. It dispels some old wive's tales, gives excellent and very pertinent information, and if there's anything you don't understand about the concept of a more durable, fast draining medium, please feel free to ask us! We're all here to help! :-) I use the recipe for Gritty Mix in all my long term plantings, which would be my house plants, and I'm going to use the 511 medium for some large patio pots I have outside. Some will contain annuals, and others will hold my Japanese Maples and other trees, or roses. Either way, the larger pots get wheeled back inside the unheated garage at season's end. I'm waiting on pins and needles, too, for the nicer weather of spring to stay with us a while! I'd like nothing better than to get all the plant material out of the garage! Happy Gardening! Here is a link that might be useful: Soil Recipes Included...

That's exactly what I got, the 6in spacing 1/4in. I left it in there on the first barrel and it actually looks like it's working (better). I have not experience with this stuff - does it need to 'break in?' I also put up a dual-fan setup on the next 2 barrels. It's sort of working (a familiar story...) - you can see, the water is getting out there but it's also getting the trunk wet (no no) maybe from wind or splashback. Looks like I will go back to the drip and see if that works.

Brady, I was looking at some soil today made by Dr. Earth that may fit the bill for what you are looking for. Maybe this mix could be top dressed on your plants or you could make a compost tea and use it as fertilizer periodically on your plants. Notice this soil "guarantees" that Mycorrhizae are present and that its Infused with eight select strains of ecto & endo mycorrhizae. Here is the link and the ingredients. http://organicgreenroots.com/Dr-Earth-BAGTAINER.html �100% Organic & Natural Hand Crafted Blend. �Infused with seven champion strains of beneficial soil microbes. �ProMoisture Hydrate� protects the Pro-biotics with an infusion of organic aloe vera. �Infused with eight select strains of ecto & endo mycorrhizae. �MycoApply Certified: Guarantees Mycorrhizae is in the soil. �Can be used as a compost tea. �Aloe Vera and Yucca extracts. �Provides abundant nutrients and ideal drainage. �Ideal mix to use at time of transplanting. �Grow plants right in the bag. �Patented bag design reflects heat away from roots. �An abundance of Bat Guano & earth worm castings. �Natural growth regulators. �Bio-active and Bio-available. �Won't burn seedlings.

The last one we have has a daphne in it - we got that daphne 23 years ago when we got married - all of the sources I looked at said that daphnes were very short lived - Ha! (tricked by paying attention to generic sources AGAIN!) The daphne has gotten big, and is going strong. This winter the barrel finally collapsed on one side, the plant sank over sideways a bit, but is still going strong months later - I think it must have rooted into the ground a long time ago. It is sort of hidden behind a Duchesse de Brabant, and so I just avert my eyes when I go by it, although I do look at the foliage to make sure it is still doing OK. Sometimes I just like to wait and see what happens - I am not a neat & tidy gardener at all. That's why I like old roses! Jackie